Band 5.5 IELTS Writing Task 1 Model Answer
Overall Band Score: 5.5 · Recent IELTS Exams (Canada & India) · 2026-09-23
IELTS Writing Task 1 question
The pie charts below show how working adults in a particular country spent their time in 1958 and 2008.
Summarise the information by selecting and reporting the main features, and make comparisons where relevant.
* Note: these aren’t the original diagrams given in the test, they were recreated for the purpose of demonstration.
Student answer (Band 5.5)
The two pie charts illustrate the comparison between the time spent on diffrerent activities by working professionals between the year 1958 and 2008.
Overall, it is immediately clear that previously people slept more relatively close to hours they worked. Furthermore, as the working hours increased considerabely people now gave less time to their families.
In 1958, working comprised of 33% while sleeping had 32% ratio which is more than any other activity, while people only spent 8% of their day relaxing.In past people used to spent 19% of their time going out with friends and family.The least proportion was spent on travelling to work.
On the other hand, In 2008 working time observed a surge it reached 42%. While, sleeping percentage plummeted upto 25%. Relaxing time increased a little and was recorded 13%. Other time was spent on travelling and playing sports both at 7%; Moreover, minimum in this year was noted at 6% for going out with family and friends.
AI examiner evaluation
| Criterion | Band |
|---|---|
| Task Achievement / Task Response | 6.0 |
| Coherence and Cohesion | 5.5 |
| Lexical Resource | 5.5 |
| Grammatical Range and Accuracy | 5.5 |
| Overall | 5.5 |
Task Achievement / Task Response: Band 6.0
The student successfully addresses all parts of the task by reporting the main features of both pie charts for 1958 and 2008. An overview is attempted in the second paragraph, capturing broad trends such as increased working hours and a decrease in family time. Key data points are accurately cited, such as working rising from 33% to 42% and sleeping dropping from 32% to 25%. However, the overview contains some minor over-generalisations or slightly unclear phrasing regarding previous sleeping hours. Overall, the response is well-grounded in the visual data and satisfies the requirements for Task Achievement.
Coherence and Cohesion: Band 5.5
The response has a clear overall arrangement with information logically separated into an introduction, overview, and two body paragraphs detailing each year respectively. Cohesive devices are used to signal transitions, such as 'In 1958', 'On the other hand', and 'Moreover'. However, paragraphing could be slightly refined, and some referencing is a bit mechanical. There are also occasional punctuation slips at sentence boundaries, such as missing spaces after periods (e.g., 'relaxing.In past'). Despite these minor cohesion and mechanical flaws, the progression is easy to follow.
Lexical Resource: Band 5.5
The student demonstrates an adequate range of vocabulary for the task, successfully using terms like 'comprised of', 'proportion', 'observed a surge', and 'plummeted'. There are some spelling errors, such as 'diffrerent' and 'considerabely', along with minor word-form or collocation issues ('Other time was spent', 'minimum in this year'). Nevertheless, the vocabulary is sufficient to convey the intended meaning without impeding communication, placing the response solidly in the competent band.
Grammatical Range and Accuracy: Band 5.5
The writer attempts a mix of simple and complex sentence forms, utilizing relative clauses and introductory prepositional phrases. Grammatical control is variable; there are several notable errors, including tense confusion ('In past people used to spent'), missing articles, and run-on structures or punctuation lapses. While these errors are noticeable and require the reader to occasionally pause, they do not severely impede overall communication. The presence of both error-free sentences and flawed complex structures points to a Band 6 level.
See this exact question answered at other band scores. The same prompt compared across bands.
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